SONIC EVOLUTION: Mendelssohn, Bernstein & Neikrug
With ear-bending polyphonics, brain-twisting chords, and utterly unpredictable progressions, Beethoven completely redefined what music could sound like. For our second summer concert, beloved clarinetist David Shifrin, violinist Bella Hristova, pianist Alessio Bax, and oboist Frank Rosenwein join forces on three masterpieces that are powered by Beethoven’s unprecedented sonic palette. The program also features a new, groundbreaking Oboe Quartet by composer Marc Neikrug, and Felix Mendelssohn’s soaring Piano Trio in C Minor.
6:30 pm | Kaul Auditorium Prelude Performance with Young Artist Institute
We have a special tradition of “picnics” before concerts at Reed College’s Kaul Auditorium. Reed’s catering service Bon Appétit offers food and drink service beginning at 6pm. Alternately, you can bring your own picnic, but alcoholic beverages must be purchased on-site.
CMNW Co-Commission • West Coast Premiere
Marc Neikrug’s Oboe Quartet in 10 Parts was co-commissioned by Chamber Music Northwest with the generous support of the CMNW Commissioning Fund, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, and Music from Angel Fire.
This concert is sponsored by Martha Dibblee.
Reed College, Kaul Auditorium
Monday, 7/1 • 8:00 pm PT
Program
Click on any piece of music below to learn more about it.
- LEONARD BERNSTEIN Clarinet Concerto
LEONARD BERNSTEIN (1918–1990) Clarinet Concerto, Transcribed from the Sonata, Arr. Sid Ramin (1942) (12’)
I. Grazioso
II. Andantino – Vivace e leggieroIn 1941, Leonard Bernstein (1918–1990) graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music. Two years later, he received the opportunity of a lifetime: a chance to conduct a nationally broadcast performance with the New York Philharmonic. It was a tremendous success, the first of many leaps forward in his storied career.
Bernstein wrote his Clarinet Sonata during that brief window between his graduation and his meteoric rise to fame. He began composing in 1941 in Key West, Florida, then finished and premiered the sonata with clarinetist David Glazer at the Institute of Modern Art in Boston in early 1942. Five decades later, Bernstein’s longtime orchestrator Sid Ramin created a new Clarinet Concerto arrangement of the sonata for clarinet, strings, and percussion.
The concerto kicks off with a jazzy clarinet riff, but the majority of the opening Grazioso movement proceeds with a restrained sense of ease. The influence of Bernstein’s teacher and lifelong friend Aaron Copland can be heard throughout, particularly in the stark, open harmonies that close the movement.
The second movement begins with a slow Andantino introduction, until an off-kilter Vivace e leggiero takes hold. Here, Bernstein uses the unusual 5/8 meter, a challenging rhythmic pattern to execute, particularly for the clarinetist. Jazzy syncopation and an effective use of contrast combine to make this movement a fantastic example of Bernstein’s early style. As one contemporary critic sagely predicted, “If this last movement is any indication…we can be sure of having something to look forward to in contemporary American music.”
—© Ethan Allred
- MARC NEIKRUG Oboe Quartet in 10 Parts
MARC NEIKRUG (b. 1946) Oboe Quartet in 10 Parts (2022) (32’)
The quartet for oboe and string trio was commissioned by Chamber Music Northwest, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, and Music from Angel Fire. They graciously allowed the World Premiere to take place during the 50th anniversary season of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival. The piece’s dedication reads: “For Steven Ovitsky with gratitude, respect, and friendship.”
The structure consists of 10 movements, which are short enough that I refer to them as “parts” rather than movements. They are analogous to a web or weaving and present several strands or musical aspects, which evolve and expand. So, for example, parts 1, 5, and 9 are one strand, and parts 3, 6, and 8 are another. Part 10 is a culmination of both those strands.
—© Marc Neikrug
- FELIX MENDELSSOHN Piano Trio No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 66
FELIX MENDELSSOHN (1809–1847) Piano Trio No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 66 (30’)
I. Allegro energico e con fuoco
II. Andante espressivo
III. Scherzo: Molto allegro quasi presto
IV. Finale. Allegro appassionatoIn 1832, Felix Mendelssohn wrote to his sister Fanny, “I should like to compose a couple of good trios.” Eight years later, Mendelssohn completed his D Minor Trio (which prompted Robert Schumann to declare Mendelssohn “the Mozart of the 19th century.”), and six years after that, the Piano Trio No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 66.
The key of C Minor held a particular significance for Mendelssohn, as it did for Beethoven (Beethoven in turn was moved by Mozart’s “serenely tragic” C Minor piano concerto, K. 491). In choosing C Minor, a key associated with some of Beethoven’s most famous works, including the “Pathétique” Sonata and the Fifth Symphony, Mendelssohn alluded to the impact of Beethoven on his own music. The first movement of Op. 66 reinforces Mendelssohn’s seriousness of purpose. It remains in C Minor throughout and is filled with agitation bordering on anxiety. Not until a contrasting second theme emerges in the cello does the tension abate briefly.
The piano introduces the Andante espressivo, a contemplative interlude with a gently rocking rhythm, and the strings maintain the tranquil mood with an expressive dialogue. The Scherzo’s lightning-fast tempo challenges the players, as does its intricate counterpoint, which continues into the Finale. Mendelssohn’s affinity for old music surfaces in the quasi-Baroque quality of the writing, as well as his insertion of a chorale midway through. The chorale merges part of an existing melody, the “Old Hundredth,” with an original tune by Mendelssohn, after which the “appassionato” of the Finale builds to a joyful conclusion.
—© Elizabeth Schwartz
Artists
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Alessio Bax
Piano
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Combining exceptional lyricism and insight with consummate technique, Alessio Bax is without a doubt “among the most remarkable young pianists now before the public” (Gramophone). He catapulted to prominence with First Prize wins at both the Leeds and Hamamatsu International Piano Competitions. He has appeared as a concerto soloist with more than 150 orchestras, including the New York, London, Royal, and St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestras, the Boston, Dallas, Cincinnati, Seattle, Sydney, and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestras, and the Tokyo and NHK Symphony in Japan, collaborating with such eminent conductors as Marin Alsop, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Sir Andrew Davis, Fabio Luisi, Sir Simon Rattle, Yuri Temirkanov, and Jaap van Zweden.
As a renowned chamber musician, he recently collaborated with Joshua Bell, Ian Bostridge, Lucille Chung, Vilde Frang, Steven Isserlis, Daishin Kashimoto, Sergei Nakariakov, Emmanuel Pahud, Lawrence Power, Jean-Guihen Queyras, Paul Watkins, and Tabea Zimmermann.
Since 2017, he has been the Artistic Director of the Incontri in Terra di Siena Festival, a Summer Music Festival in the Val d’Orcia region of Tuscany. He appears regularly in festivals such as Seattle, Bravo Vail, Salon-de-Provence, Le Pont in Japan, Great Lakes, Verbier, Ravinia, and Music@Menlo.
Bax’s award-winning Signum Classics discography includes 13 albums covering a wide range of repertoire in solo, piano duo, and concerto.
At the record age of 14, Bax graduated with top honors from the Conservatory of Bari, his hometown in Italy, and after further studies in Europe, he moved to the United States in 1994. A Steinway artist, he lives in New York City with pianist Lucille Chung and their daughter, Mila. He has been on the piano faculty of Boston’s New England Conservatory since the fall of 2019.
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Nina Bernat
Bass
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American double bassist Nina Bernat, acclaimed for her interpretive maturity, expressive depth and technical clarity, emerges onto the world stage with awards and accolades, thrilling audiences everywhere. She was hailed by Star Tribune as a “standout” for her recent concerto debut with the Minnesota Orchestra, praising her performance as “exhilarating, lovely and lyrical…technically precise and impressively emotive.”
In 2023, Nina was honored as a recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant and winner of the CAG Elmaleh Competition. Recent 1st prizes include the Barbash J.S. Bach String Competition, the Minnesota Orchestra Young Artist Competition, the Juilliard Double Bass Competition, and the 2019 International Society of Bassists Solo Competition.
Engaged in all aspects of double bass performance, she has been invited to perform as guest principal bassist with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and Oslo Philharmonic, serving under the batons of conductors such as András Schiff and Osmo Vänskä. Nina is in demand as a passionate chamber musician. She began her involvement with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center as a member of the Bowers Program in 2025. She has spent summers at Marlboro Music Festival, Verbier Festival, Music@Menlo, and Chamber Music Northwest.
She is quickly becoming a sought-after pedagogue, having given masterclasses at the Colburn School, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and University of Texas at Austin, among others. She is on the faculty of Stony Brook University.
Nina performs on an instrument passed down from her father, Mark Bernat, attributed to Guadagnini.
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Sunmi Chang
Violin
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As the laureate of both the 2007 International Markneukirchen and Sion-Valais International Violin Competitions, Korean-born violinist Sunmi Chang has performed widely to much acclaim throughout North America and Europe as a soloist and chamber musician.
At the age of 17, she toured with the Yehudi Menuhin School Orchestra playing Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, conducted by Lord Menuhin in UNESCO Headquarters and Guildford Cathedral in England. In 2008, Sunmi was the soloist on Yale Philharmonia’s tour to Seoul, Beijing, and Shanghai, performing the Beethoven Violin Concerto. To celebrate Beethoven’s 250th birthday, she returned to Yale, performing Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with cellist Paul Watkins and pianist Melvin Chen, conducted by Peter Oundjian.
An active chamber musician, she has performed in various chamber music festival, including the Rising Stars Series at Caramoor, Vivace Music Festival, Music@Menlo, Music in the Vineyards, and Chamber Music Northwest. Sunmi is also the Founder & Artistic Director of Summit Chamber Music Series—committed to bringing world-class chamber music to West Virginia.
In December 2023, Sunmi recently released Mother Tales under the PARMA recording label with pianist Clara Yang—an album that pays tribute to four remarkable women composers Florence Price, Gabriela Lena Frank, Liliya Ugay, and Amy Beach.
Sunmi received her Bachelor’s degree at the Hanns Eisler Musikhochschule in Berlin, a Master’s degree and an Artist Diploma at the Yale School of Music, and a Doctoral degree from the University of Michigan. Her principal teachers have included Eberhard Feltz, Peter Oundjian, Soovin Kim, Ani Kavafian. She recently joined as the violin faculty at the School of Music at the University of Oregon.
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Alexander Hersh
Cello
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Having given his Carnegie Hall debut recital in 2022, cellist Alexander Hersh has quickly established himself as one of the most exciting and creative talents of his generation. He frequently appears as soloist with major orchestras, including the Houston Symphony and Boston POPS, and has received top prizes at competitions worldwide including the 2022 Pro Musicis International Award, Astral Artists National Auditions, Salon de Virtuosi Career grant, New York International Artists Association Competition, and the Schadt competition.
A passionate chamber musician, Hersh has performed on tour with Musicians from Marlboro and appeared at music festivals worldwide including Marlboro, Chamber Music Northwest, Caramoor, Ravinia, Music@Menlo, I-M-S Prussia Cove, Manchester, Amsterdam Cello Biennale, Kneisel Hall, and Lucerne. He serves as Co-Artistic Director of NEXUS Chamber Music, an artist driven collective of musicians whose mission is to make classical music culturally relevant through live concerts and multimedia content.
In 2023, Hersh released his debut album ABSINTHE, a project that marries his love of classical music with short films, comedy, and themed merchandise. The narrative-based videos are available on Hersh’s YouTube channel and the album is out now on all streaming platforms.
Raised in Chicago, Alexander Hersh began playing the cello at the age of five. He received his B.M. and M.M. from New England Conservatory where he graduated with academic honors. Later he was a recipient of the Frank Huntington Beebe fund for studies in Berlin where he studied at the Hanns Eisler Hochschule for Musik Berlin. His previous teachers have included Laurence Lesser, Hans Jørgen Jensen, Kim Kashkashian, Nicolas Altstaedt, and Paul Katz. He plays a G.B. Rogeri cello, courtesy of Guarneri Hall NFP and Darnton & Hersh Fine Violins.
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Bella Hristova
Violin
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Bulgarian-American violinist, Bella Hristova, has won international acclaim for her “expressive nuance and rich tone” (The New York Times) and “impressive power and control” (The Washington Post). An Avery Fisher Career Grant recipient, she has also won First Prize in the Michael Hill International Violin Competition, First Prize in the Young Concert Artists International Auditions, and Laureate of the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis.
Bella has performed extensively as a soloist with orchestras in North and South America, Asia, Europe, and New Zealand. In addition to her many appearances with orchestras, Bella has performed recitals at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and performs frequently with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Following multiple tours of New Zealand with renowned pianist, Michael Houstoun, the pair have recorded the complete Beethoven and Brahms violin sonatas.
A champion of music by living composers, Bella Hristova has commissioned composers including Joan Tower and Nokuthula Ngwenyama. In 2016, Bella was the featured soloist for a consortium of eight major orchestras for a new concerto commission written for her by her husband, acclaimed composer David Serkin Ludwig. The world premiere recording of the concerto was recently released with JoAnn Falletta and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.
Bella began violin studies at the age of six in her native Bulgaria. She later studied with Ida Kavafian at the Curtis Institute of Music and Jaime Laredo at Indiana University. She plays on a 1655 Amati violin and lives in New York City with her husband, David, and their four beloved (but poorly behaved) cats.
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Marc Neikrug
Composer
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Marc Neikrug has been the Artistic Director of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival since 1998. An internationally renowned pianist, he’s well known for his 35-year partnership with violinist Pinchas Zukerman, which produced highly acclaimed recitals and recordings. Also widely recognized as one of today’s leading composers, Neikrug has had his works performed at the Aspen, Berlin, Frankfurt, Hollywood Bowl, Ravinia, Schleswig-Holstein, and Tanglewood music festivals, among many others; by the Berlin State Opera and Deutsche Oper Berlin; and by ensembles such as the New York Philharmonic, the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, and the Atlanta, BBC, Boston, Houston, Jerusalem, Milwaukee, National, Pittsburgh, and Polish National Radio symphony orchestras. He’s served as Composer-in-Residence for Music from Angel Fire and the Bravo! Vail Music Festival, Marlboro Music Festival, and La Jolla Music Society’s SummerFest.
Recent compositions by Neikrug include his Fourth Symphony, commissioned by the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, which premiered the work in Hamburg in May 2022, and A Song by Mahler, a theater-and-music work that premiered at Chamber Music Northwest in Portland, Oregon in July 2021. The work was co-commissioned by Chamber Music Northwest with the support of the CMNW Commissioning Fund, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the La Jolla Music Society for SummerFest, and the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival.
Neikrug was born in New York City in 1946. In the 1980s, he moved to Santa Fe, where he lives with his wife, Dolly Naranjo, and their family, which now includes two great-grandchildren. His honors include receiving a 2019 Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts.
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Paul Neubauer
Viola
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Violist Paul Neubauer’s exceptional musicality and effortless playing led The New York Times to call him “a master musician.” In 2025 he will release two albums for First Hand Records that feature the final works of two great composers: an all-Bartók album including the revised version of the viola concerto, and a Shostakovich recording including the monumental viola sonata.
At age 21, Mr. Neubauer was appointed principal violist of the New York Philharmonic, and he held that position for six years. He has appeared as soloist with over 100 orchestras including the New York, Los Angeles, and Helsinki philharmonics; Chicago, National, St. Louis, Detroit, Dallas, San Francisco, and Bournemouth symphonies; and Mariinsky, Santa Cecilia, English Chamber, and Beethovenhalle orchestras.
He has also premiered viola concertos by Béla Bartók (revised version of the Viola Concerto), Reinhold Glière, Gordon Jacob, Henri Lazarof, Robert Suter, Joel Phillip Friedman, Aaron Jay Kernis, Detlev Müller-Siemens, David Ott, Krzysztof Penderecki, Tobias Picker, and Joan Tower. He performs with SPA, a trio with soprano Susanna Phillips and pianist Anne-Marie McDermott, with a wide range of repertoire including salon style songs.
He has been featured on CBS’s Sunday Morning, A Prairie Home Companion, and in Strad, Strings, and People magazines. A two-time Grammy nominee, he has recorded on numerous labels including Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, RCA Red Seal, and Sony Classical.
Mr. Neubauer appears with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and is the artistic director of the Mostly Music series in New Jersey. He is on the faculty of The Juilliard School and Mannes College
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Monica Ohuchi
Piano
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Monica Ohuchi’s “commanding pianism” (The New York Times, Anthony Tommasini), performing “with beauty, clarity and drive…[offering a] warmth…expressiveness [that’s] irresistible and deeply moving” (Barre Montpelier Times Argus) allows her an active career as a piano soloist, chamber musician, and pedagogue. “Dutifully and gracefully” (San Francisco Classical Voice) attentive to musical depth and detail, Ohuchi is the pianist and executive director of Fear No Music, and performs locally with Chamber Music Northwest, Classical Up Close, 45th Parallel, and the Chintimini Chamber Music Festival, among many others. Ohuchi’s engagements include collaborations with David Parsons Dance Company and the Oregon Ballet Theater, and soloing with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Marin Symphony Orchestra, and Newport Symphony Orchestra. She is a frequent guest clinician and adjudicator for the Oregon State and Washington State Music Teacher Associations, as well as the Oregon state chapter of the National Federation of Music, and a regular performer on All Classical Radio. Her solo album released on Helicon Records, Monica’s Notebook, is a series of piano études written expressly for her by her husband, Kenji Bunch. Ohuchi is currently the program director of music performance at Reed College, where she also teaches piano and chamber music. Ohuchi holds advanced degrees from the Juilliard School in Piano Performance. She most enjoys spending her time with her husband, their two children, and two pitbull-mix rescue dogs.
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Ian David Rosenbaum
Percussion
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Praised for his “spectacular performances” (Wall Street Journal), and his “unfailing virtuosity” (Chicago Tribune), Grammy-nominated percussionist Ian David Rosenbaum has developed a musical breadth far beyond his years.
As a passionate advocate for contemporary music, Mr. Rosenbaum has premiered over one hundred new chamber and solo works. He has collaborated with and championed the music of established and emerging composers alike.
Mr. Rosenbaum was nominated for three Grammy Awards in 2021 for his performances on albums of music by Andy Akiho and Christopher Cerrone, including two nominations for Seven Pillars, an album by Sandbox Percussion released on Aki Rhythm Productions, a record label that Mr. Rosenbaum and Mr. Akiho founded in 2021.
In 2012, Mr. Rosenbaum joined the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Bowers Program (formerly CMS Two) as only the second percussionist they have selected in their history, and has performed regularly with CMS since then.
Mr. Rosenbaum is a founding member of Sandbox Percussion, the Percussion Collective, and the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble. He has recorded for the Bridge, Innova, Naxos, and Starkland labels, and is on faculty at the Mannes School of Music and the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Mr. Rosenbaum endorses Pearl/Adams instruments, Vic Firth mallets, and Remo drumheads.
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Frank Rosenwein
Oboe
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Frank Rosenwein joined The Cleveland Orchestra as Principal Oboe at the beginning of the 2005-06 season. He made his solo debut with the orchestra in February 2007, in Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 2. Since then, he has performed many times as soloist, including playing the Richard Strauss Oboe Concerto in 2012 and the first Cleveland Orchestra performances of the Vaughan Williams Oboe Concerto in 2017.
Since 2006, Mr. Rosenwein has served as head of the oboe department at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where in 2015 he was given the Alumni Achievement Award. He also teaches at the Kent Blossom Music Festival, and is in demand as a guest artist and masterclass clinician in schools all over the world. An avid chamber musician, he has spent many summers at the Marlboro Festival and has performed with the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, and the Seattle Chamber Music Society.
Born in Evanston, Illinois, Mr. Rosenwein holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with John Mack (Cleveland Orchestra Principal Oboe, 1965-2001), and a Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School where he studied with Elaine Douvas. Prior to coming to Cleveland, he served as Principal Oboe (2002-05) of the San Diego Symphony and San Diego Opera.
Mr. Rosenwein is married to Cleveland Orchestra Associate Concertmaster, Jung-Min Amy Lee. They live in Beachwood with their three sons, Joshua, Julian, and Benjamin, and their dog, Rosie.
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David Shifrin
Clarinet & Artistic Director Emeritus 1981–2020
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Clarinetist David Shifrin graduated from the Interlochen Arts Academy in 1967 and the Curtis Institute in 1971. He made his debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra having won the Orchestra’s Student Competition in 1969. He went on to receive numerous prizes and awards worldwide, including the Geneva and Munich International Competitions, the Concert Artists Guild auditions, and both the Avery Fisher Career Grant (1987) and the Avery Fisher Prize (2000).
Shifrin received Yale University’s Cultural Leadership Citation in 2014 and is currently the Samuel S. Sanford Professor in the Practice of Clarinet at the Yale School of Music where he teaches a studio of graduate-level clarinetists and coaches chamber music ensembles. He is also the artistic director of Yale’s Oneppo Chamber Music Society and the Yale in New York concert series. Shifrin previously served on the faculties of the Juilliard School, the University of Southern California, the University of Michigan, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and the University of Hawaii.
Shifrin served as artistic director of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center from 1992 to 2004 and Chamber Music Northwest in Portland, Oregon from 1981 to 2020. He has appeared as soloist with major orchestras in the United States and abroad and has served as Principal Clarinet with the Cleveland Orchestra, American Symphony Orchestra (under Stokowski), the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the Symphony Orchestras of New Haven, Honolulu, and Dallas. Shifrin also continues to broaden the clarinet repertoire by commissioning and championing more than 100 works of 20th and 21st century American composers. Shifrin’s recordings have consistently garnered praise and awards including three Grammy nominations and “Record of the Year” from Stereo Review.
Shifrin is represented by CM Artists in New York and performs on Backun clarinets and Légère reeds.
Upcoming Concerts & Events
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Peter Stumpf
Cello
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Peter Stumpf is Professor of Cello at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Prior to his appointment, he was the Principal Cellist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic for nine years, following a twelve-year tenure as Associate Principal Cellist of the Philadelphia Orchestra. He received a Bachelor’s degree from the Curtis Institute of Music and an Artist’s Diploma from the New England Conservatory of Music.
A dedicated chamber music musician, he is a member of the Weiss-Kaplan-Stumpf Trio and has appeared at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center, and in Amsterdam, Tokyo, and Cologne. He has performed with the chamber music societies of Boston and Philadelphia, and at numerous festivals including Marlboro, Santa Fe, Bridgehampton, Spoleto, and Aspen. He has toured with Music from Marlboro, and with pianist Mitsuko Uchida in performances of the complete Mozart Piano Trios. As a member of the Johannes Quartet, he collaborated with the Guarneri String Quartet on a tour including premieres of works by Bolcom and Salonen.
Concerto appearances have included the Boston Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Aspen Music Festival, among others. Solo recitals have been at Jordan Hall in Boston, on the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society series, on the Chamber Music in Historic Sites series in Los Angeles, and at the Philips and Corcoran Galleries in Washington, D.C. His awards include first prize in the Washington International Competition.
He has served on the cello faculties at the New England Conservatory and the University of Southern California.